On Mary’s Mountain

John Allen Jr., one of the most well known Vatican correspondents in the English speaking world delivered a lecture at the Mount’s Knott Auditorium on the evening of March 15. Allen, who is the author of numerous books on the Catholic Church, is the senior correspondent for CNN while also appearing frequently on NPR and numerous other news outlets. Allen’s book, The Future Church: How Ten Trends are Revolutionizing the Catholic Church, was the basis for his speech in which he described fully four of the ten trends, stressing the implications they will have for the future of the Catholic Church. His speech aimed to encourage priests, seminarians, and lay people to begin developing a greater global understanding of the universal Catholic Church of which American Catholics comprise only a very small part. He also shared numerous stories, both serious and humorous, recounting his experiences from working for years in the Eternal City and accompanying Benedict XVI and John Paul II on their many pastoral journeys around the world. At the conclusion of the lecture, Allen was generous in answering questions for about half an hour.